Stone to military: Stop animal drills

The filmmaker stars in a PETA video supporting the animal-rights organization’s campaign to end animal usage in military drills.

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“Each year, more than 10,000 live animals are shot, stabbed, mutilated, and killed in horrific military training exercises that are supposed to simulate injuries on the battlefield,” PETA alleges on its website. “But the training exercises that are taking place in these highly secret courses bear no resemblance to real battlefield conditions — and they don’t help soldiers save the lives of their injured comrades.”

“I believe that those who are willing to fight for our country need the best possible training,” Stone says in the video. “Giving them a goat who was dismembered with hedge trimmers is not it. In the 21st century, there are more humane and effective ways to train service members than violently dismembering live animals.”

Stone’s connection to the military is two-fold: He’s an Army veteran, and several of his films, including Platoon and Born on the Fourth of July, portray combat.